| Sweets may decrease production of | | | | most common types of stress -- psychological |
| glucocorticoid, a stress-related hormone that | | | | and physical."Psychological stress could |
| has been linked to obesity and decreased | | | | involve such things as public speaking, being |
| immune response, researchers from the | | | | threatened, or coping with the death of a |
| University of Cincinnati (UC) have | | | | loved one.Examples of physical stress are |
| found."Glucocorticoids are produced when | | | | injury, illness, or prolonged exposure to |
| psychological or physical stressors activate | | | | cold.No Weight Increase ObservedFor the |
| a part of the brain called the 'stress | | | | study, researchers gave adult male rats free |
| axis,'" says Yvonne Ulrich-Lai, PhD, a | | | | access to food and water, and also offered |
| postdoctoral fellow in the department of | | | | them a small amount of either a sugar drink, |
| psychiatry."These hormones help an individual | | | | an artificially sweetened drink, or water |
| survive and recover from stress, but have | | | | twice a day.After two weeks, the rats were |
| been linked to increased abdominal obesity | | | | given a physical and psychological stress |
| and decreased immune function when produced | | | | challenge. Following both types of stress, |
| in large amounts," she adds."Finding another | | | | rats that had consumed the sugar drink had |
| way to affect the body's response to stress | | | | lower glucocorticoid levels than those that |
| and limit glucocorticoid production could | | | | drank the water. Those drinking the |
| alleviate some of these dangerous health | | | | artificially sweetened drink showed only |
| effects," Dr. Ulrich-Lai suggests.The | | | | slightly reduced glucocorticoid |
| laboratory findings were presented on | | | | levels.Although the researchers were not |
| November 15 at the annual Society for | | | | studying the health effects of the sweetened |
| Neuroscience meeting in Washington, | | | | drinks, they did not see a body-weight |
| DC.Psychological and Physical StressDr. | | | | increase in the rats consuming the sugar |
| Ulrich-Lai and a team of researchers from the | | | | drinks.The next step will be to determine how |
| department of psychiatry showed that when | | | | these sweetened drinks are decreasing |
| laboratory rats chose to eat or drink sweet | | | | glucocorticoid production, notes James |
| snacks their bodies produced lower levels of | | | | Herman, PhD, co-author, professor and stress |
| glucocorticoid."The sweets we are talking | | | | neurobiologist in the department of |
| about are not the low-calorie, | | | | psychiatry."We need to find out if there are |
| sugar-substitute variety," says Dr. | | | | certain parts of the brain that control the |
| Ulrich-Lai. "We actually found that sugar | | | | response to stress," he says, "then determine |
| snacks, not artificially sweetened snacks, | | | | if the function of these brain regions are |
| are better 'self-medications' for the two | | | | changed by sugar snacking. |